Dairy Crest misused omega-3 study, says ASA

Dairy Crest misused a clinical study on omega-3 in children to
claim that its St Ivel Advance milk could benefit some children's
ability to learn, says the UK advert watchdog in its report of the
case.

Britain's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said Dairy Crest
was wrong to rely on the so-called Oxford-Durham study to claim
that its omega-3-enriched, St Ivel Advance milk could enhance
children's ability to concentrate and learn.

Dairy Crest has agreed to stop making the claim at the ASA's
request, following a complaint from the instigators of the
Oxford-Durham Study and from two members of the public.

The ruling is a publicity blow to Dairy Crest, one of Britain's
biggest dairy processors, as it attempts to capture more added
value markets.

The ASA said in its ruling, published Wednesday, that omega-3
supplements had appeared to help children with learning
difficulties in the Oxford-Durham Study. But, it said St Ivel
advance did not contain the same ingredients or the same amount of
omega-3 as these supplements.

The maker of those supplements, Equazen, complained to the ASA
after conducting its own analysis of St Ivel Advance.

Adam Kelliher, Equazen's managing director, said children would
have to drink more than five litres of semi-skimmed St Ivel Advance
every day to get the same amount of omega-3.

"The campaigns were completely misleading and offered false
expectations and hopes to consumers, and particularly parents, that
one or two glasses of so-called clever milk would make their child
cleverer,"​ said Kelliher.

He said Equazen was concerned about damage to its reputation via
the Dairy Crest ads.

Dairy Crest has defended its "clever" St Ivel Advance milk,
saying its claim was backed up by scientific evidence.

The product has done well since its launch in May 2005, reaching
annual retail sales of £13m after its first year and helping the
firm move further into higher margin, added value markets.

Lord Robert Winston, a high profile scientist who took part in
the Dairy Crest adverts, joined the company in criticising the
ASA.

He said he had examined more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and
"there is a very strong case for encouraging parents to give
their children more Omega 3".​ He added that milk was a good
means of doing this.